High on the Hog

Imagine going out to eat skin, fat and feet. They’re terrific the way Toad House presents them.

By the way, Toad House may be the name on its business card, but don’t look for those words on any sign. All that appears in English on the exterior of the restaurant, amid lots of information in Korean, is “Pork B.B.Q. House.”

The small menu is devoted to pork--no beef or chicken; seafood only in appetizers. The restaurant gets its pork from Canada, perhaps because the cold weather there encourages fattiness.

The lead dishes are black pork belly and belly with “wild” (noniodized) salt. Black pork belly (which is pink and white) is cut from the side and is a little leaner than regular belly, which is cut from the center and has a thin layer of skin attached.

Both come to the table frozen and sliced like thick bacon. As they start to brown on a portable grill, the waitress cuts them into short lengths that wind up bite-sized as the fat melts down.

You dip the cooked meat in yellow bean powder and red chile sauce, then place it on a green salad tossed with a spicy-sweet dressing. The final step is to lay a sheer, white square of fresh rice noodle on top and, working with chopsticks, wrap the meat and some of the salad in this. The result is a bundle of textures and flavors--soft, silky and crisp, sweet, salty and hot. The rice wrapper produces the impression of eating pasta with meat and greens. No wonder this dish is so popular. It’s on almost every table.

Regular barbecued pork--lean meat in a spicy red marinade--is called fried sliced pork here. It’s fattier than in other Korean restaurants and includes vegetables. Although barbecued lean pork is one of my favorite dishes, I prefer the belly pork here.

Fried pork skin with vegetables is a brilliant red and green dish sprinkled with sesame seeds. The skin, cut in slim strips, has been boiled to tenderize it and, I suppose, eliminate some of the fat. Then it is stir-fried with green onions, red bell pepper, oyster mushrooms, jalapenos and sweet red chile paste. The pale strips of skin contribute a chewy texture to this knockout dish.

Korean-style pig’s feet are nothing like American pickled pig’s feet. The feet are boiled with soy sauce, and the meatiest portion is removed from the bone and cut into attractive, mottled slices that bring to mind Chinese cold cuts or a French terrine. There’s a clear, briny dipping sauce containing jalapenos and the tiniest imaginable shrimp. At first glance, they look like shreds of ginger--then you notice the black eyes, small as a grain of sand.

Pork potato soup is mostly bones, difficult and messy to eat. It includes chewy oval rice cakes, green onions and fragrant sesame leaves. Served in a black pot, it is sizzling hot and fiery with chiles.

The three Korean pancakes include a plain golden mung bean cake that is embedded with a sesame leaf--a pretty idea. This pancake is small enough to have as a side dish.

The Toad House offers combination dinners ranging from $30 to $50, which include enough food for three. The pork potato soup is part of the low-end dinner. The $50 dinner includes black pork belly, brisket and other dishes. All come with a bottle of soju , a popular Korean alcoholic beverage derived from sweet potato. Korean beer is also available.

The side dishes ( panchan ) that accompany meals change slightly from day to day. One night, the selection included raw blue crab with kimchi seasonings, a boiling egg in a black pot and a potato salad that contained Asian pear. Marinated spinach and bean sprouts are sometimes plain, sometimes red with chiles. One of the best sides was a meaty tofu with bell peppers and hot chiles. It appeared at lunchtime.

Very little English is spoken at the Toad House, and sometimes that is mingled with Spanish, making a curious blend of languages. “ Para to go?” the waitress asked when I gestured to some remnants of meat. Fortunately, there’s an English-language menu. The restaurant is divided into two sections. A breezy patio-like area accommodates smokers. The inner, nonsmoking section is smaller, but more brightly lighted and cheerful.

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Toad House (Pork B.B.Q. House), 4503 W. Beverly Blvd., L.A. (323) 460-7037. Open from 11 a.m. to midnight Monday through Saturday, 4 to 11 p.m. Sunday. Beer and soju . Parking lot. Major credit cards. Combination meals $30 to $50. Barbecue and other dishes, $10 to $25. What to get: black pork belly, belly with wild salt, pig foot, fried pork skin with vegetables, Korean pancakes.